Gibson, a staple at the Cardinals’ opening-day ceremonies, ranks first in many pitching categories for the club. He won 251 games, completed 255, threw 56 shutouts, pitchef 3,885 1/3 innings and had 3,117 strikeouts. All are club records.
He also threw a no-hitter in 1971 and, most significantly, posted a record-setting earned run average of 1.12 in 1968. The next year, Major League Baseball lowered the height of the pitching mound from 15 inches to 10, trying to help the hitters.